The Intersection of Marketing + Technology

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

Welcome!
There have been lots of new subscribers in the past couple of weeks, so welcome to all of you. This post is a snapshot of the news I thought was interesting and relevant this week. I try to do these posts each Friday (time permitting). If you have anything you think is Buzz worthy, let me know!

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

No video this week, but I'll be back next Friday with a full post and video. Enjoy the buzz.

A recent survey of business journalists found that 80% use or would use blogs as primary or secondary information for stories. Yet another reason blogs are a good move if you're trying to establish yourself in an industry or niche.

Robert Scoble was kicked out of Facebook for running a third party script to get his contact's contact info. He was then re-instated after asking to be allowed back and agreeing not to violate the terms of service again.

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

In the battle for social network platform suppremacy, chalk one up for Facebook this week. They've opened their platform to other networks to allow them to hook into Facebook functionality. This competes directly with Open Social. Bebo made the first move, but we'll have to see who else jumps on.

A job description at Apple (one way people figure out what the secretive company will do next) is looking for a Microsoft Exchange sync expert supposedly to bring more support to the iPhone. Could make the iPhone a real corporate contender if it happens.

Honrable mention: Tay Zonday (the "Chocolate Rain" guy, has this new Dr. Pepper commercial. Added to YouTube on November 28, 2007 and has nearly 1.3 million views. His original video is nearing 12 million views. Here is the commercial.

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Inside the video:

Google announced two huge platforms over the past couple weeks. OpenSocial aims to make app development easier across multiple networks and Android looks to be the OS for mobile devices of the future.

Josh Hallett is sick of bad presentations at conferences. Can't say that I blame him. Sadly, the same people speak repeatedly to audiences making everyone less smart. Conference organizers, get new, better speakers!

Geoff looks at some key points to consider when looking into social media for your company. His are similar to my points; have something to say, want to say it, say it, get out of the way, support the community.

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

ComScore says social networking is two times bigger outside the US. Check out this post on Mashable for more info. Networks also don't translate from country to country. Orkut, for example, is the largest social network in Brazil. Which do you think will become popular in China?

Joel Spolsky has a great post on managing timelines in IT projects. If you are involved please do yourself a favor and read this post.

Rohit has a great summary from the Nielsen CGM Summit. Lots of interesting information here. I love when people live blog and recap conferences. Big value if done right.

There is speculation that LinkedIn may go the IPO route. With so few companies going public, it's tough to tell how the market will receive them.

David Armano questions if digital agencies should be blogging. I absolutely think they should for a number of reasons including thought leadership, experimentation, team engegement and most importantly social media participation. Make sure you add your vote.

Valeria points out that a lot of people are asking the wrong questions in this marketing2.0 world. The question is about control and how companies can keep it. Bottom line is that you cannot and the smartest thing you can do is participate and make sure your voice is heard. Nothing worse than a silent party.

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

It's been a couple of weeks since I did a proper Buzz Friday post so here it is. Enjoy!

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Inside the video:

Joe Jaffe is bumrushing the charts to try to get his new book into the Amazon best sellers list. Click here to see how you can help.

Mack Collier writes a great post on the Spirit Airlines fiasco they've created. Long story short, blogger gets hosed, asks for refund, company CEO replies to all saying they don't care and PR person says they don't respond to bloggers. What a mess. Josh picks it up as well here.

Gavin Heaton is holding a contest for marketers to use their smarts and help a small business. You can get more details on his blog here.

And in other news:

Flickr is making more changes to their geotagging/mapping area. Phones and cameras with GPS are making this more and more easy to do.

Facebook's targeting LinkedIn with new user groups. Will people buy this? Do we need separate networks or can you filter people out? What is somebody spans both? LinkedIn is counting on there being a need for two.

David Armano rounds up his prolific coverage from the Forrester Forum. He was *everywhere*.

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

It's been a couple of weeks since I did a proper Buzz Friday post so here it is. Enjoy!

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Inside the video:

Firebrands launched a preview of their 24 hour, best of advertising network that will span online and mobile. More on this when it releases.

Arun Rajagopal reports that the Age of Conversation has made the cover story of the Dubai-based Khaleej Times ‘Weekend’ magazine! Go Arun!

Sean Scott points to a cool new Google widget that Starbucks has built. It allows you to see the locations near you and invite others to meet you there.

And in other news:

CK and David Reich point out a new service from Pudding Media where they listen to your conversation, discern what you're talking about and then send you ads in email after your call. They claim not to record any info, but it seems a little creepy to me.

Toad reminds us again that "Your Brand Is Not My Friend" in this post. Can't wait to read his inaugural MarketingProfs post on Monday.

I loved this post from the blog Buenos Aires Spotting. The world's first reverse marathon was run on September 8th through Parque Centenario. Runners used CDs fixed to hats to see what was behind them.

Steve Rubel is at it again. He's moving his whole online life and the mining of data into Gmail. Can't wait to see where he takes this and how he manipulates the data to add value.

Joost announced a partnership with MLB. I still wonder who cares about this? Is anybody actually using Joost? Other services are delivering the same experience through a web browser without the annoying application.

Mack points out some excellent examples of why companies need to care about social media.

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

It's been a couple of weeks since I did a proper Buzz Friday post so here it is. Enjoy!

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Many are reporting that the WSJ may open its content for free to the world. This is the shining example of paid content success. What could this mean for newspapers and magazines everywhere? Is ad revenue from impressions more profitable than the subscriber model?

Critical Mass has launched their new blog "Experience Matters" and with bloggers like David Armano and Scott Weisbrod on board it's one to watch.

Digg's made some recent moves to become more of a social network. Does it have the power (or audience) to make a charge toward Facebook/MySpace?

CK points out some recent PETA ads featuring scantily clad celebs in an effort to get their message out. This doesn't work for me as there are much more powerful images that impact me. They are nice to look at though.\

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

In the video:

Ad Age goes a little bi-polar

Get Satisfaction receives $1.3 million for crowd sourcing help

Google turns 10

I'll add the normal links tomorrow when I get back in town and have a chance to catch up.

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Apple is expected to unveil a new line of iPods and a new wireless iTunes service next Wednesday. P.S. if you are going to buy an iPod this weekend WAIT!

I particularly like this interview that David Armano did with his colleague David Stallsmith. Great insights into design.

I found this hilarious. A guy running for school board creates an ad and posts it to YouTube. Viacom's VH1 show "Web Junk 2.0" took it and used it on their show. The guy who created it posted the VH1 version on his site and Viacom ordered him to take it down. Right hand, meet left hand.

Great post by Greg Verdino on video. Greg shows the craziness that happens when a study is done by somebody who's business hinges on the results looking a certain way. Interruption is on the way out.

Jaiku has added instant messenger to its offering. Definitely a more robust platform than Twitter, but the people are still on Twitter.

Iain points to a huge QR poster in London to promote the DVD release of 28 Days Later. Would have been even more cool had the message not said the same thing.

Good to see bloggers who tell it how it is. Check out this honest and fair review of a book by David Berkowitz. This is a possibility for anybody doing a blogger outreach campaign. I hope the author takes David's advice.

Here is a look at what is happening across social media and new marketing this week. If there is anything that you would like to see in this post or if you have something you think is Buzz-worthy please drop me an email or leave a comment on this post. I want to make this as beneficial for you as I can.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Here are all of the items that I think are interesting this week:

If you like the iPhone, but not AT&T you may be in luck. A group of developers has seemingly unlocked the iPhone. Check out this article on Engadget.

YouTube announced in-video overlay ads this week to much discussion, debate and outright anger from some users. They've since announced that ads will be optional and controlled by content creators.

People are still having fun with Microsoft's Zune and the rumors that they're releasing a phone too.

Do you like bacn? Bacn is the newest hot slang floating around the Net. Basically it means all of the email that you get from social networking sites that you want to read, but wish wasn't in your inbox. More here.

Patrick Schaber at Lonely Marketer had amazing coverage of SES San Jose last week. Check it out if you want to catch up and see what happened. This post on image marketing was particularly nice.

Are you still pitching bloggers with the same old generic email or press release? Want to pitch bloggers the right way? Take BL Ochman's great advice.

Are you starting a new company blog? Do you want to get a lot of subscribers right off the bat? Tap your client list and optimize your content offering as Brian Clark suggests.

Twitter is finally rolling out some real value-add enhancements. Check out the people search on the main page.

Adobe's new Flash player will support HD video. This will hurt services like Joost, et. al. who were counting on p2p delivery or other non-traditional delivery of video.

MTV, Real and Verizon have joined forces to offer up a new music service. Does this sound like a good move to anybody out there? Real is dead, MTV's audience is on iTunes more than any other group and Verizon isn't innovating anything.

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Here are all of the items that I think are interesting this week:

Skype, the popular VoIP service owned by eBay, suffered a major outage yesterday. The outage even coincided with a dip in eBay's stock price. Connection? Oddly I heard about this from Twitter then blogs then Skype in that order with about 10 hours between the Tweet and Skype's response.

If you're thinking about buying a new iPod, hold off says Engadget. I would agree with this.

It's my bill in a box. It seems AT&T is sending physical paper bills that detail all of the text messages their customers send and receive. This has resulted in many forests being chopped down as iJustine found out.

David Reich has a humorous look at a new move to regulate PR through a certificate. His point, there are bigger fish to fry.

Faris Yakob points to a funny clip around the Sony Bravia campaign. You have to have seen the previous ad to get it, but if you did you know just what this guy is talking about.

Jeremiah notes a Lewis PR survey in which 90% of marketing departments are planning to launch a social media campaign in 2008.

New social network Yappd launched recently and claims to be a Twitter/Flickr mix. Look for a lot more of this kind of integration in the next quarter.

The status of virtual worlds are, as I've said before, like the web was in the mid-90's. Nick Wilson agrees. Tangerine Toad thinks they're mostly a waste right now for marketing, but notes there are other uses that are powerful. Doug Meacham has a well thought out post on why marketers are failing in some cases. This debate will rage on.

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

The DIY Network is running a series called Blog Cabin where people could log on to a site and basically help design a log cabin through blog software. Four million votes have been tallied so far. Very innovative on DIY's part.

TubeMogul is a brilliant new service that I am using to simultaneously publish the video that I am creating here to (as of right now) 9 different video sites. This saves me at least an hour of follow up.

If you have a MySpace profile, Tom is probably your friend. The new site DropTom lets you set a new default user instead of poor ole' Tom.

Marcus Brown (aka Sacrum), my fellow Age of Conversation author, has started a new idea company called The Ides of March with a very cool model. He'll take on any problem for you and you pay him what you think it's worth. If you don't like the idea, he gets to blog it to his readers. He's a brilliant guy so what's to lose?

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Here are all of the items that I think are interesting this week:

The value/monetization conversation in social media is staying front and center. CC Chapman has a very thoughtful post on the subject today which I encourage you to check out. Also check Mack's take on this subject. Both use Joseph Jaffe's iPhone for an episode example. More on this from me on Monday. Check my thoughts in the video.

A new Reuter's report shows that young people don't see tech, it's integrated and seamless for them. That's the way it is for me. The more technology disappears the more valuable it becomes.

Are you thinking about mobile? You should. Verizon's reported that in June alone, 10 billion text messages were sent and received.

Joost is still in beta, but claims they will have 1 million users at their year-end launch. Personally, I've forgotten about the service and I'd be interested to see what percentage of those users are active.

Check out Greg Verdino's post about the re-purposing of 30 second spots. Using an existing ad online in a rich media ad is a lazy way to create web content. Don't think this an integrated campaign makes.

Verizon is the first to offer direct to YouTube video uploads. This would have been nice to see on the iPhone, but ironically it doesn't record video. Baffling.

Facebook's looking to monetize as evidenced by their new CFO, the former YouTube CFO.

Mack Collier points to Mario Sundar's post about comment rating platform SezWho. Are we ready for this or is this one more reason to keep new ideas from coming forward? People already don't comment and other people will comment no matter what.

Want to find more ways to collaborate online with groups of people? Check Mashable's list of over 60 apps.

The Simpsons Movie has a great little site for promotion called "SimpsonizeMe". Below is what I would look like as a character on the show. Try it out, you know you've always wanted to.

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Here are all of the items that I think are interesting this week:

Joe Jaffe started a firestorm in his podcast Across The Sound when he offered to allow a company to sponsor his podcast in trade for an iPhone. Mack Collier picked up and ran with it. Check the video for my take.

Valeria offers up a couple nice points on Facebook and other networks. I think there is a twist to this though. Check the video.

BL Ochman had a really nice post on the "real value" of social networks. Her point (and mine as well) is that these networks are helping to build real relationships, share knowledge and improve our lives little by little. There is a lot going on in social media which makes it exciting and challenging. If you feel overwhelmed, just back off a bit.

Greg Verdino gets my award for best photo on a blog post. His point is something I preach all the time. To truly uinderstand social media and marketing with it, you have to use it. What are you waiting for? Jump in!

Sean Scott at 15 minutes bought a copy of the Age of Conversation and really hit the nail on the head in his post 'Is your company structured right?". Let's build on this momentum and affect change!

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion.

Buzz Friday is also available as part of the Techno//Marketer Podcast on iTunes. Click here to subscribe and take the Buzz to go.

[Feed readers please click through to the post if you cannot see the video.]

Here are all of the items that I think are interesting this week:

The hottest marketing book of the year (well, at least one of them) comes out on Monday. The Age of Conversation, of which I am one of the authors, combines the thoughts of 100 authors, bloggers and change agents centered around the theme of creating conversations. Check back here on Monday morning for more info. All proceeds go to charity. Thanks Drew and Gavin!

Nielsen/NetRatings announced it will abandon the page view metric in favor of visitor time on site. MUCH more debate on this to come.

Jeremiah at Web-Strategist has a nice post about social media measurement. Anyone in this space should check it out.

Doug Meacham gives a great write up of the Whole Foods CEO debacle. Read this for a lesson in what NOT to do if you run a company.

British police will be using head-mounted cameras with video recorders to capture incidents. I think much more of this is going to be coming along the Justin.tv route.

YouTube re-affirms its stance as the king of user generated content announcing the winner of their Sketchies contest.

How do you feel about Starbucks? Anybody who knows me well knows how I love them so. Head over to Lewis' blog to let him know how you feel.

AT&T is reporting that 25% of their iPhone customers switched from another carrier. That's one way to stay relevant. They're going to need to keep up the dev cycle on new phones as more companies copy quickly.

I mentioned something like this in my social media video strategy post, but more companies are developing devices that are integrated with social networking sites. Casio announced their new cameras will hook up to YouTube.

The people at Will It Blend? have a great new video out on blending the iPhone. Apple fanboys avert your eyes.

People are actually selling invites to the social networking site Pownce on eBay. People please, just ask for them. The service is still not very useful to me, but I'm waiting to see if it gains critical mass.

Marc Andreessen, one of the founders of Netscape back in the day, has been blogging for five weeks and he's hooked. Here are his thoughts. Welcome to the blogosphere Marc!

Yahoo is rumored to be building their own social network called Mosh. More to come on this I'm sure.

Possibly the first copyright infringement lawsuit in Second Life happened around the fourth of July. I foresee more of these in the future as real world items are replicated virtually. We'll have to see what precedent is set here.

David Armano pulled a nice little joke on readers announcing a fictitious social netoworking site called BouGie. He had people going before calling it off showing how easy it is to spread the message if you reach the right people.

A Google blogger posted a personal post on the company's health care blog regarding Michael Moore's new movie Sicko. The post was out of line per the company's position and is another lesson learned for all of us. Thanks Scoble.

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion.

[Audio should be good this week. You can subscribe via RSS to receive an update when I post a new video here.]

[Feed readers please click through to the post to see the video.]

Here are all of the items that I think are interesting this week:

The iPhone launches at 6pm tonight at Apple and at&t stores nationwide. It will be interesting to see if they sell out or if the stores are just busy. By my calculations the phone plus one year of service is around $1500. People have beencamped out for days to get the first couple units. To tell you the truth, I would be out there too, but I have Verizon.

Greg Verdino has a great piece about loving your haters. Jason Calacanis proved this strategy successful the other day on his Calacanis Cast show when he invited four SEO critics and Jason stole the show.

Buzz follows Kevin Rose (of Digg) wherever he goes in whatever he does. Marion Sundar covers his new venture Pownce combines IM, file transfer and Twitter-like presence and group push functionality. It's in limited beta so anybody with an invite to spare shoot it over.

Dell has released some pretty new colors on their Inspiron laptops. Drew McLellan has a nice post about what happens when a product shifts categories. I do think, however, putting new colors on the same old hardware running MS Vista isn't a real shift. Apple was a radical shift because it combined the OS with the design.

Jeremiah Owyang at PodTech shares a brilliant idea from his trip to Singapore. A company provides a camera and printer for customers to take a picture. They're encouraged to take one home and leave one for their wall. It's become a tourist attraction and business driver.

I attended a great virtual branding event at crayon's Second Life HQ the other day. I thought it was a great way to liven up what would be a mediocre phone conference. It allowed for the personal interactions that we take for granted about attending in real life.

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion.

[Note: The audio this week should be noticeably better for you. Let me know if anybody has trouble hearing it.]

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. Let me know if there is anything you would like me to add on.

I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion. (Would anybody be interested in seeing this become a video podcast feed?)

Apple iPhone comes out next week and demand is expected to be high. If you're looking for one, you better be ready to camp out.

Apple also had their WWDC conference this week where Jobs gave a keynote. Most notably out of that came Apple's Safari for the PC. Exploits ensued, but I sense a need for the browser for iPhone integration. We'll see. 1 million people have already downloaded it.

Second Life's voice integration is expected soon where people can chat with each other through micropohones. This will greatly enhance the level of interactivity.

Google was going to hold a competing social get together for eBay merchants during eBay's big conference to try to lure people to Google's Checkout. eBay threatened to pull all of their keyword advertising on Google and the event was cancelled. Ah the strongarm.

If you disagreed with Seth Godin, would you say something? I hope you would. Check out Drew's blog for a great discussion about this. I think too many people use Seth and Guy as traffic building tools tracking back to them with irrelevant mentions and links. Discussion about an idea is good, but tracking back to every post is just dumb.

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. Let me know if there is anything you would like me to add on.

I am refining this post over time, so if there is anything you would like me to add just email me or leave a comment. Similarly, if you have something you think is Buzz Friday worthy let me know and I'll look it over for inclusion. (Would anybody be interested in seeing this become a video podcast feed?)

Book Club @ MarketingProfs kicks off their new book next week with Made to Stick by the Heath brothers Dan and Chip. This is one of my top all-time favorite business books. If you're interested and want to get in on the action, head on over there and sign up.

The hype surrounding the iPhone is reaching deafening levels now. Apple has an estimated 3 million units ready to ship and there is still a shortage projected. The big question for me is the Apple touch screen as an input device. I think there could be a major potential problem there.

Steve Woodruff of StickyFigure has launched a new blog called BrandingWire. A group of 12 experts will discuss branding in the age of technology and provide valuable insights to marketers everywhere.

Facebook apps are launching quickly on the new F8 platform. Properties include Flickr, Digg and Google Reader.

Feedburner officially announced their acquisition by Google. I'm looking forward to getting my feed stats in the same location as my site stats. Lots of potential here for ad revenue in RSS feeds via Feedburner.

Guy Kawasaki's newest venture, Truemors, has received mixed review. Despite what you think of the site, he has proven what I've said for a long time. Technology allows people to built rapid concepts, launch them and tweak over time easier than ever before. He launched the site for $12,107.09.

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. Let me know if there is anything you would like me to add on.

Thanks to CK for providing me the inspiration to start doing this entry with video. This is the inaugural post so check it out! (Would anybody be interested in seeing this become a separate video podcast feed? Let me know in the comments.)

Speaking of Twitter, Netvibes launched a module to integrate the messaging platform. If you want more information on Twitter, check out my post from earlier this week.

Real Netoworks is trying to become relevant again in a flash video world. Check out this interview with Robert Scoble on a new piece of technology that lets you take Youtube (and other flash video) offline.

Jason Calacanis' new project Mahalo launched this week. The idea is that it's a search engine filtered by humans. David Berkowitz has a nice take on it on his blog. Yahoo started with this model so it's nothing new, the problem they're going to have is handling the volume of content without bias. I still think the 50matches model has more promise

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. Let me know if there is anything you would like me to add on.

Items I think are interesting:

More and more ad agencies are creating digital units (Y&R announced theirs yesterday). For digital to really work in any agency setting they need to integrate completely. I've seen it fail many times and I wonder why mega agencies aren't getting it.

I talk about digital's importance all the time. When Rupert Murdoch says the same thing it carries a little more weight. He certainly seems to get it (via DigitalHive)

Apple claimed the sale of 10% of all notebooks sold in the US in March. Are you developing and testing for Macs? You should be.

Delta is bringing its emergence from Chapter 11 to the masses and trying to reinvigorate their brand. A recent site launch and possible Twittering are helping to move them along, but time will tell if they take it to heart or not. Check out Joseph Jaffe's take.

A new search engine called 50 Matches poses a new model in the search realm. The site only indexes content which was tagged or voted on in social networking sites. All the more reason for companies to make sure they get involved in the right ways.

Kevin Rose of Digg fame is rumored to be starting another company to compete with Twitter. It's going to take something special to dislodge Twitter's first mover advantage.

Yahoo and Microsoft may not be sitting in a tree as was rumored last week, but the two companies are working more closely together to take on Google.

Firefox is rumored to be working on a mobile browser, but company sources say it's a while off. My questions is WHY? They need to make their mark now and make the phone more usable. The growth potential is huge here.

Joost looks to be getting $45 million more in funding...I still don't get it. We'll see if a) they can scale up to the current user load and b) if the cable companies catch up quickly.

Google has taken the first small step towards meging offline and online buying. This is where the company's real power will show itself if they can move fast enough.

SOBCon is this weekend in Chicago and I am really bummed that I can't attend. I hope the event becomes an annual one. The speaker list holds some of my friends and the attendee list is just as impressive.

As much as I like mobile technology, here is a reason NOT to use your cell phones in movie theatres.

When social networking is on pace to pass porn as the most popular activity on the net, you know this is not a fad. That's what the Economist is saying. Check it out via Smart Mobs.

A late entry to the list, David Armano has a great post about persona ecosystems. It's a fantastic way to visualize (this is Armano what do you expect) the entire breadth of people's persona identities. Enjoy.

Here is a look at what is happening across a couple of sites I keep an eye on. Let me know if there is anything you would like me to add on.

Items I think are interesting:

If you don't know who Lionel Messi is, he is an Argentine soccer phenom playing in FC Barcelona. Check out this video. Fantastico! (This is a shout out to my friends in Buenos Aires.)

I added a link on my blog below LinkedIn to a service called MyZiki. You go on and create a profile for yourself and it aggregates all of your media (posts, photos, comments, twitters) in one place. They also buy the keywords for your name in major search engines so you come up at the top of the list. Go ahead and search for 'Matt Dickman' in Google and Yahoo. You'll see my Ziki ad show up at the top.

Nikon's PR force launched a blogger focused campaign for the D80 (the camera I personally use). It's gotten mixed feedback, but certainly has generated plenty of buzz. Check our Mack's post and the comments for more thoughts.

Valeria Maltoni at Conversation Agenct asks a question that I've been curious about. Is LinkedIn working for you? Hop over there and join the conversation (agent).

Seth Godin had a post on his Dip Blog last week asking for a list of quitters. I sent mine in and was chosen by Seth to receive a signed copy. I devoured it and will post more here when the book becomes publicly available on May 10. I recommend you go ahead and put your order in now.